The present invention relates generally to a conductor cleaning system, and more particularly to a system for cleaning aluminum strands of all aluminum and steel reinforced conductors, such as ACSS, ACSR, ACAR, and AAA.
In current power transmission systems, failures can pose a significant risk to the reliability of the system. There are several factors that contribute to these failures—one such factor is the failure of compression connectors.
Current data suggests that a primary root cause for failures in compression connectors is improper installation. Examples of improper installation include lack of compound, alignment, wrong die, and poor cleaning of the aluminum strands of the conductor prior to installation of compression connectors. Research indicates that corrosion products and other contaminants (resulting from years of exposure to the environment) left on the conductors during splice assembly can raise the resistance of the splice-conductor joint. Cyclical variations of load current feeding through the increased resistance of the splice-conductor joint causes thermal expansion/contraction that eventually reduces the grip of the splice to a point where it can no longer hold the conductor.
Currently, compression connector installers clean the aluminum strands with a wire brush, which results in ineffective cleaning of the strands, leaving corrosion products and other contaminants behind. Further, the installer cannot clean internal strands using the wire brush unless the installer takes the time to unstrand the conductor. Unfortunately, unstranding is impractical in most field conditions and can increase the risk of damage to the individual strands.
Accordingly, there is a need for a conductor cleaning system that can effectively clean both outer and inner strands of a conductor without the need to unstrand the conductor.